Necessary and urgent work began yesterday morning at the Policlinico Emergency Room, but the inconveniences are inevitably compounding the chronic ones, and the repercussions are being felt throughout the entire emergency care network.

The alarm

Patients are being held on stretchers in the corridors almost everywhere; ambulances and crews are held hostage for long periods with the patients on board, leaving some areas unattended. If a vehicle is needed, it has to be sent from far away, perhaps even an hour's drive away. Therefore, there's no guarantee of immediate intervention.

The waiting times recorded last night by the regional monitoring system were nightmarish: nine hours for green codes and 10 for white ones in Monserrato. At 6 p.m., there were 13 ambulances lined up outside the hospital, says Mario Vicentini, president of Alba, the 118 association.

At the same time, the wait at Santissima Trinità was six hours, at Brotzu seven hours (with 14 ambulances in line), "and those reported by the app are estimates," he adds, "which means that if serious cases arrive in the meantime, these waiting times will be extended even further." Pierpaolo Emmolo, president of the Soccor coordination unit, explains: "The situation is increasingly critical, the associations are experiencing serious difficulties, also due to their agreement with the Region, there is a shortage of doctors, fewer and fewer volunteers, and there is a disenchantment with an activity that has become unsustainable."

Cristina Cossu

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